Twitter Penny Stock Pumper ‘Alex DeLarge’ Pleads Guilty to Fraud

An Ohio man pleaded guilty to securities fraud after admitting he used a popular Twitter account to pump and dump penny stocks.

Steven Gallagher’s plea was announced Friday by federal prosecutors in Manhattan. Using the Twitter alias “Alex DeLarge,” he encouraged his 70,000 followers to invest in certain over-the-counter shares, selling his own stakes as their purchases drove prices up.

“Alex DeLarge” was active during much of the period last year when Reddit and YouTube users were pushing meme stocks like GameStop. Gallagher’s arrest in October and a parallel Securities and Exchange Commission lawsuit filed against him were seen as ...